Health Scare Story Du Jour

From the BBC:

Researchers found toxic chemicals from recycled newspapers have contaminated food sold in many cardboard cartons. The chemicals, known as mineral oils, come from printing inks... Exposure to mineral oils has been linked to inflammation of internal organs and cancer.

Government scientists in Switzerland found quantities of mineral oils between 10 and 100 times above the agreed limit in foods like pasta, rice and cereals sold in cartons made from recycled cardboard. In one scientific paper they describe the potential for mineral oils to migrate into foodstuffs as "frightening". However, the Swiss food safety authorities have concluded that consumers who eat a balanced and varied diet have no need to worry...

In one study for the German food ministry last year he and his colleagues tested a sample of 119 products bought from German supermarkets. They found mineral oils passed easily through the many of the inner bags used to keep food dry and fresh. The longer a product stood on the shelves, the more mineral oil it was likely to absorb.

Dr Grob told the BBC: "Roughly 30 products from these 119 were free of mineral oil. For the others they all exceeded the limit, and most exceeded it more than 10 times, and we calculated that in the long run they would probably exceed the limit 50 times on average and many will exceed it several hundred times."

The agreed safe limit for mineral oil saturated hydrocarbons, outlined in European legislation covering plastic packaging, is a concentration of 0.6mg per kilogram...

Dr Grob said: "Toxicologists talk about two effects. One is the chronic inflammation of various internal organs and the other one is cancer." But he stressed consumers would have to be exposed to contaminated foods over many years for their health to be at risk...